How Boosterthon Helped a Boston School QUADRUPLE Their Fundraising Profit

Lisa Cary, PTA Vice President of Richardson-Olmsted Elementary outside of Boston, MA, remembers what life was like before Boosterthon.

“We held several labor-intensive fundraisers each year.”

Many of them were product-sale fundraisers, which means their students sold items like soup, wrapping paper, coupon books, and flower seeds. Their most successful fundraiser netted a profit of $7,000.

According to Lisa, these fundraisers were insufficient for a number of reasons:

They were a lot of work for very little profit

The volunteers who ran all of the fundraisers were getting burned out

They had a very low participation percentage (the same families purchased all of the goods)

But when the team at Richardson first partnered with Boosterthon in the spring of 2015, the results were phenomenal. In two weeks the school profited over $30,000—more than QUADRUPLE the amount of their best previous fundraiser.

In two weeks the school profited over $30,000—more than QUADRUPLE the amount of their best previous fundraiser.

Plus, nearly 75% of Richardson families participated in the Boosterthon program. According to Lisa, “that number is unheard of during a soup fundraiser.”

Over the past three years, Boosterthon has helped Richardson-Olmsted profit just under $100,000. With those funds, they’ve been able to provide tons of educational resources for their teachers and students:

More teacher supply money

New iPad covers

New document cameras

New outdoor banners for the school

Coffee and water for the staff

New playground designs from a landscape architect

Ice cream socials

Field trips

Water bottles for awarded students

and more

Deborah Hammett, the school’s principal, said teachers are using the extra supply money to create small group learning centers in their classrooms, which are proven to increase academic achievement. The field trips and added technology help with academic performance as well.

Over the past three years, Boosterthon has helped Richardson-Olmsted profit just under $100,000.

But besides delivering consistent financial results, Principal Hammett loves the fact that the Boosterthon program builds character and focuses on fitness.

“We believe a strong social curriculum is important, so the character lessons are very valuable to us,” she said. “We also want our children to be physically safe and healthy. Encouraging running while raising money is terrific.”

All in all, “The Boosterthon team is amazing, the money is great, and the character lessons for the kids are important,” said Deborah.

“The Boosterthon team is amazing, the money is great, and the character lessons for the kids are important.”

When asked what she would say to a school who’s on the fence about partnering with Boosterthon, Deborah’s response was simple: “Do it!”

Want to see more case studies about how Boosterthon’s program has helped schools like yours raise more and stress less? Check out these three on the blog!